Jazz arranging · Swing & the Big Band Era
BillyMay
1916–2004 arranger · composer · orchestrator
May's arranging style was characterized by crisp, swinging brass sections, often featuring his trademark "slurping" saxophones—a…
- Predominant era
- Swing & the Big Band Era
- Lifespan
- 1916–2004
- Signature
- iridescent color
Bio · 39 words
Edward William "Billy" May Jr. was born in Pittsburgh and studied at the Carnegie Institute of Technology. He played trumpet and arranged for the Glenn Miller Orchestra before moving to California to work as a freelance arranger and conductor.
01
Musical style
Sound DNA
Five shared dimensions make the arranger’s musical priorities visible at a glance.
Iridescent
Instrumental color leads the design.
Compact
Ideas arrive in tightly packed frames.
Expansive
Wide spans define the orchestral frame.
Layered
Several musical planes coexist.
Propulsive
Rhythm actively drives the architecture.
02
Orchestration
At the
arranging desk
“Small Hours,” orchestrated in the style of Billy May. Hear the parts, follow the score, and examine the decisions inside each chord.
Original miniature
Small Hours
8 bars · C major · 4/4 Swing eighths · 2:1
Wide brass spacing and low reed answers create an extroverted studio-band setting. This eight-bar setting uses quarter-note walking bass beneath trumpet.
Choose Play to hear the recorded ensemble.
The passage
Read what you hear
All parts at sounding pitch · middle C = C4 · eighth notes follow the selected feel. Select a bar to inspect or replay it.
Inside the ensemble
Listen by part
Combine Solo buttons to hear a voicing or a doubling. Mute removes a part from the mix.
Downloads include every part at concert pitch. MIDI includes the selected tempo and swing feel.
Bar 01 · I · tonic
Cmaj9
Solo the upper trumpet and lower trombone voices to hear the span before adding the reeds.
Sounding pitches
High to low · muted parts are dimmed · note releases can leave a rest between attacks.
| Part | Pitch | Chord role |
|---|
From the arranging bookshelf Sebesky · Nestico
This original Billy May study applies the books’ approach of examining voicings, registers and instrumental combinations. It illustrates one facet of the artist’s work in a reduced ensemble; it is not a transcription or a reproduction of a book example. The melody and eight-bar progression remain the same throughout the artist collection.
- Don Sebesky, The Contemporary Arranger: “Combining the Woodwinds,” printed pp. 69–70 (PDF pp. 78–79), compares balance at different registers. “Voicing the Strings,” beginning on printed p. 124 (PDF p. 133), discusses distributing string voices. “Combining Strings with Winds,” printed p. 155 (PDF p. 164), demonstrates how a flute changes the color and balance of a string line.
- Sammy Nestico, The Complete Arranger: “Close [Block] Voicing” and “Semi-Open Voicing,” printed p. 24 (PDF p. 26), contrast a compact moving saxophone block with a voice dropped an octave. The part scores and pitch inspector let you examine the spacing used in this artist’s study.
Each artist’s arrangement uses separately recorded parts, so Solo and Mute reveal the same performance heard in the full ensemble. Winds, piano and supported orchestral instruments use MuseSounds; upright bass uses Karoryfer recordings. Other colors retain the credited libraries below. Tempo changes preserve concert pitch.
Performances rendered with free MuseSounds and the libraries below. Recording credits and instrument coverage.
Recordings: VSCO 2 CE (CC0), MTG Solo Saxophones (CC BY 4.0), and Karoryfer Meatbass (CC0). Additional sounds: FluidR3 GM (CC BY 3.0). Full credits and sample changes.
03
Music first
Scores & orchestras
Switch recordings to compare how this arranger’s musical priorities shape each orchestral profile.
Come Fly with Me · 1958
Moonlight in Vermont
May's arrangements for Sinatra represent some of his finest work.
Listen forNotice how register shapes the orchestral profile.
Profile derived from the arranger’s documented style and recording notes; exact instrumentation is not asserted.
Sorta-May · 1953
Fat Man Boogie
May's arrangements for his own orchestra showcase his jazz credibility.
Listen forNotice how register shapes the orchestral profile.
Profile derived from the arranger’s documented style and recording notes; exact instrumentation is not asserted.
Just One of Those Things · 1957
Blues in the Night
May's arrangements for Cole emphasize the singer's swing side rather than his ballad persona.
Listen forNotice how register shapes the orchestral profile.
Find listening example on YouTubeProfile derived from the arranger’s documented style and recording notes; exact instrumentation is not asserted.
04
Start here
Three essential albums
One line each—enough context to choose the next listen.
- 01 1958 Come Fly with MeFrank Sinatra May's arrangements for Sinatra represent some of his finest work.
- 02 1953 Sorta-MayBilly May May's arrangements for his own orchestra showcase his jazz credibility.
- 03 1957 Just One of Those ThingsNat King Cole May's arrangements for Cole emphasize the singer's swing side rather than his ballad persona.
Voicing & register
At the section’s first attack (beat 1), the voicing is: Trumpet E5 (3); Tenor sax E5 (3); Trombone E4 (3); Baritone sax E4 (3). Bass path: C2–E2–G2–G♯2.
Timbral combination
The section follows the tune in unisons and octaves. Harmony is left to the accompanying instruments. Tenor sax · answer rests here, leaving the lead color exposed.
Voice leading & harmony
The opening E is the third. G–A–G makes the sixth a brief neighbor before the melody lands on D, the ninth.